Odd And Interesting

There are some really, really, really terrible places to get caught using your phone.

PureMobile has been there. And we want to tell you about some of the worst places we have been caught or caught others on the phone and what it has cost us as humans.

On The Metro

The subway/Metro/public transit is a dead zone for phones. Either they don't work, they are terribly annoying, or they are a dangerous distraction.

Yep, that's all of us being collectively late for work, school, or life in general because we just wanted to crush a little more candy or finally beat 2048 for the first time. It's hard, but it gets better, don't worry.

What it cost us: Dignity? Time?

In The Bathroom

Of course. Doing your business on the phone while, doing your business. I think it's disgusting, I'm sure everyone does, but we all do it. Some people fake going to the bathroom just to do it. But it doesn't always work out..

Ugh. There isn't one thing I hate more than anticipating a film and having it ruined by someone who thinks their conversation trumps the collective attention of everyone sitting behind them. Ugh.

What it cost us: $15

On An Airplane

You did this. You and your texting.

Just kidding. That is footage of a crash test. But still, nothing makes me more uneasy than the realization I have forgotten to switch off my phone during take off and I have doomed everyone onboard the aircraft to a watery grave.

What it cost us: A time travelling voyage through parallel dimensions with an unsatisifying conclusion.

In August of 2013, we are on the verge of the next big unveil by Apple. Maybe it's the 5C, or iPhone 6, maybe the 5S. No one is 100% sure. Needless to say whichever phone does come next, it'll borrow from the iPhone 4S, which borrowed from the 4 and so on. But where did the original iPhone come from? Well that my friends can be partly answered with the Apple Newton.

In 1991, the Newton was pitched to John Sculley, then the CEO of Apple. It was envisioned as a new class of hand-held computing. A device that could take notes, store contacts, manage calendars, send faxes, and even transpose your hand writing, done with a stylus, into a digital format. It featured what designers called the "batman design". It was dark, sleek, and most importantly fit in your pocket. 20 years ago this week, the device hit store shelves. That's where the apple fell too hard on this Newton.

The device, which released in 1993, was barely working when it was sent to production. Features like the handwriting recognition were ridiculed in the media. A comic, published nationally, famously ran a series on mis-identified words with the Newton. It was most famously known for mistaking "Catching on?" with "egg freckles", sparking hilarity and even leading to an Easter Egg in future software designs of the device.

But, as much as the public laughed at the device, there was one person who hated the Newton more than anyone else. Steve Jobs. When Jobs was able to regain control of the company he took massive pleasure in canning it. His biggest complaint? The stylus. He was quoted as saying "God gave us ten stylus'" when asked to reflect on the failure that was the Newton and its hobbled input mechanism.

Now, what does this have to do with the iPhone? Well, the obvious connection is that both devices are mobile computing platforms designed by Apple. Through trial and error (the Newton) Apple was able to learn how to get it right and drop the stylus. But, on a deeper level the development of the Newton kickstarted the development of the ARM Processor, a piece of technology that may have fallen by the wayside if not picked up by Apple to build their mobile computers.

It may not have been pretty, and it may have been stubborn, but the Newton certainly paved the way for the mobile computing advances we enjoy today. It seems the Apple didn't fall too far from the tree when it came to the iPhone.

Mobile phones have permeated every aspect of our lives. We talk on them, text on them, email on them, bank on them, shop on them. Fact is, you can pretty well operating your entire life with that little device in your pocket. But, it hasn't always been that way. It has been a rocky road of development for the cellphone. Let's take a look at the story of mobile technology with a brief history of mobile phones.

Early Days

Mobile technology began to be explored as far back as 1918 in Europe. Like most things in those times, the technology was centred around trains. Military trains experimented with mobile communications tech post World War I and went public in the 20's on trains largely based out of Germany.

In the 40's the first mobile call was made from an automobile. In 1946, the first call was made from a car in St. Louis, Missouri. That was followed up by a service set up in Chicago, illinois that year. These phones weighed 80 pounds and operated on just three channels city-wide. That later expanded to 32 channels on three bands. This practice continued in some capacity until the 1980's.

The First Truly Mobile Phone

Motorola began development on the first truly mobile phone in 1973. It took a decade for the first phone to hit market. The Motorola DynaTAC launched on March 6th, 1983. It retailed for $3,995 for those who were lucky enough to get their hands on one. The phone itself featured up to 30 minutes of talk time, 8 hours of stand-by time, a 10 hour charging cycle, and cost $100 Million dollars to develop. This phone ran on a 1G Network and was followed up by several variations.

The Network Expands

2G Networks launched in Finland in 1991. It took 10 years for 3G Networks to start pop up, followed up by the standard 4G Network in 2009, and now, we are settling into LTE networks. During this period phones began being offered by numerous companies and service providers. The number of subscribers has sky-rocketed, going from 12.4 Million people in 1990, to over 6 Billion people in 2011.

The clear back of Griffin's Reveal Case for iPhone 5 allows the perfect opportunity for embellishment

Hey crafty crafters out there, a new DIY trend is sweeping cell phone accessories – easy, custom iPhone cases or skins that take just minutes. If you're looking to turn your iPhone 5 into a one of a kind statement or show off your artistic talent, all you need is some creativity and a clear-backed iPhone 5 case. We like Griffin's Reveal Case for iPhone 5 because it's tough and comes in a variety of different colored borders.

Start with paper, scissors and exacto. Image courtesy of PharMa.

Start with your clear iPhone case and whatever you want to put as the layer that shows between your phone and the case's shell. Using a piece of paper cut to the dimensions of your phone is probably simplest, but we've seen people online do this project with everything from lace doilies to feathers.

Of course, even with flat printed materials, there's a world of options. from a cool roadmap for the eternal globetrotter, to personal photos, decorative gift paper, and even collage for the skilled artists out there. The result is a completely unique iPhone 5 case with handcrafted look that says something personal about you.

Use a favorite photograph or decorative craft or gift paper. Image courtesy of Shelterness.

If you're using anything that's remotely 3D, you may want to glue it to a cut-to-measure piece of paper anyway, to keep it in place, depending on the material. Again, Griffin's clear-backed Reveal Case for iPhone 5 is a good choice here since it'll give you a nice snug fit that won't allow your personalized layer to move around too much.

We're loving the versatility of this cool new trend, which will allow you to get as many looks as you want, as often as you want, from a single iPhone 5 accessory. You'll be able to switch up you cover for special events (think team logos for a big sporting event or solid colored paper to match your evening outfit.)

A little ingenuity and a couple of minutes will give you a totally unique look.

To get exact instructions on this trend, you can check out PharMa's article on DIY Intergangeable iPhone covers, but a quick Google search and a little ingenuity should see you through this quick and easy project.

And, at the cost of most clear-backed iPhone 5 cases – Griffin's Reveal Case is around the $20 mark, but Pure Mobile's actually got it on sale at the moment – this is a DIY phone case project that's as cheap as it is fun and easy. If you find yourself inspired, let us know about your own craft project in the comments section below.

When is an iPhone accessory not an iPhone accessory? When it's a musical instrument.

At first glance, you may think you've got Artiphon's Instrument 1 all figured out. On the surface it looks like some sort of mobile take on Guitar Hero that runs on your smartphone or MP3 player instead of a video game system.

But as Mashable explains in their in-depth review, the Instrument One is most certainly more than just an “appcessory.” Instead, it's a real musical instrument in its own right. Scratch that, it's a real multi-instrument that uses your iPhone or iPod Touch “as its brain.”

Made of genuine hardwood and sporting high-end speakers, it doesn't really look like a guitar, or a keyboard, or any other instrument per se, but that's the whole point. As Artiphon founder Mike Butera told Mashable, the Instrument 1 intentionally stays away from trying to replicate any specific instrument so that musicians are free to use it any way they want. So you can play it like a violin if you want, but it's really up to you.

According to Mashable, “The Instrument 1 works with any core MIDI enabled app, but there are plans to release a companion app for more detailed / custom mappings in the future.”

We're not sure what to make of the Instrument 1 yet, or whether we'd actually play one. But we've got to give it credit for being one case where the iPhone accessory outshines the device.

But for us gadget lovers, there's star tech. We're always dying to know what devices the celebrities are using, and how they dress them up. So this week, the Pure Mobile blog has scoped out the hottest mobile accessories in Hollywood.

The good news? You don't have to be rich and famous to steal these stars' gadget style.

1: Hugh Jackman's lime green iPad case

We're green with envy for Hugh Jackman's lime iPad case

Judging by his taste for green mobile accessories, you'd think Wolverine actor Hugh Jackman might have preferred to play a different superhero – the Hulk. He was spotted with this bright green iPad case while out and about.

When you're the President, you can't exactly go flashing a smartphone case with rhinestones on it. Instead, U.S. President Barack Obama keeps it classic, with a black leather Blackberry pocket sleeve on his belt.

Hollywood, and recording artists in particular, seem to be obsessed with Beats headphones. The Beats by Dr. Dre line includes earbuds too, but it's the over-the-ear Beats models that have racked up a list of celebrity fans like Gwen Stefani, Lebron James, Justin Bieber and tons more.

Gwen Stefani's more modest Beats headphones lack the precious jewels

Lil Wayne even has a special pair of diamond-encrusted Beats headphones, though we're thinking those are probably pretty hard to come by. Still, you can rock stardom's leading headphones in models that don't cost more than than a king's ransom.

A poster in the Windows Phone Central forums uploaded images of his Surface Tablet, which still works after being run over by a car

It's doubtful whether any owner of a new Microsoft Surface Tablet would perform the following test on purpose, but a poster in the Windows Phone Central forums has unwittingly discovered what happens when you run over the device with a car.

You know how sometimes, before getting in your car, you'll forget a cup of coffee on the roof of the car, only to have it whip off into the road a block or two away? Well, this unfortunate man did more or less the same thing, but with a his tablet.

Aside from some superficial dents and scratches, the tablet is still intact

Noticing some trash cans that needed to be taken in outside his house, he set the Surface Tablet on the car roof and, forgetting all about it, drove off to work. Naturally, as soon as he realized what he'd doe, he turned right around and drove back the direction he came from, to find his Surface Tablet lying in the middle of the road:

"[I] watched the last group of traffic drove by. Each car passed by with the tires on each side of the Surface until the very last car. The tire of the car ran completely over the Surface and next thing I saw was my brand new $700 tablet and touch cover flying through the air in separate directions!"

Long story short, the poor guy was delighted when he opened up the tablet and found that, not only was the screen completely intact but that, hitting the power button, everything worked as it should.

"The Surface feels completely sturdy, exactly like how I got it. Everything works in it, even the touch cover (which got a slight tear in it) works completely fine! Microsoft has made such an incredible product, I am completely speechless how this could happen!," he wrote.

The tablet has a few scratches dents and dings, but otherwise survived no worse for wear. Needless to say, the poster is pretty happy about his choice of tablets, writing: "This product is insane! I would love to see what an iPad looks like after getting run over by a car going 60 mph!"

"There is not a single scratch nor crack in the screen!" wrote the relieved tablet owner

U.S. wireless carriers and the Federal Communications Commission have joined together to create a national database that locks stolen cellphones out of carrier networks.

Smartphones and other mobile devices are so easy to snatch. They’re small and portable. They’re worth a lot of money. They’re easy to pirate with just a swap of a SIM card. The FCC's database of stolen phones is designed to limit theft to the plastic and electronics and not the information contained inside.

The database works by blocking a stolen cellphone’s IMEI number, making it impossible to get service for that phone. AT&T and T-Mobile have teamed up, and their joint database is online now. Verizon and Sprint are supposed to have their joint effort up and running soon. In the next year, the four major carriers are planning to merge their databases. Smaller carriers will join in along the way.

Eventually the FCC and the U.S. carriers will expand the database to cell providers all over the world. “The goal is to not only protect the consumer by cancelling the service, but by ultimately protecting the consumer by drying up the aftermarket for stolen phones,” said CTIA Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Chris Guttman-McCabe.

While we can’t stop ourselves from leaving our phones in the coffee shop or having it picked out our pocket, there are things we can do to protect our privacy. Use PINs or passwords, and make sure you know how to use your phone’s remote-wiping capabilities. It might seem like closing the barn door after the horse has left, but at least a thief has only stolen your high-buck smartphone and not your identity.

Branded as the official James Bond Skyfall phone, Sony's XPeria TL arrives at AT&T November 2

Dubbed the "Official James Bond Phone," the latest in Sony's XPeria Lineup, the Xperia TL, will be swaggering into AT&T stores as of November 2.

In pretty hyperbolic style and promising to "give everyday people the chance to live like James Bond," the AT&T press release promised to make the new smartphone available for $99.99, so long as you sign a 2 year contract.

According to Engaget, the device has quite a lot going for it, despite the fact that its "materials feel cheap." For one, it's got a 1.5GHz dual-core S4 processor as well as NFC capabilities.

Aside from that, AT&T just couldn't help reminding us all (for what seems like the thousandth time) that the Xperia TL is "featured in the upcoming James Bond cinema release Skyfall [and] will be used in the film by 007 himself."

But just in case you didn't get the message, they've preloaded the device with tons of Skyfall content like "behind the scenes footage, interviews, clips, wallpapers, ring tones, and more."

Though we have a hard time believing that any smartphone can ever really let someone "live like James Bond," we have to admit the XPeria TL at least looks slick enough to be something Bond would carry.